Teach English as a Second Language | Tips and Ideas

The EPIK Program is one of the most reliable sources of job placement for international teachers looking to work in South Korea. It is a well-known and well-respected organization, but is a doozy. One of the graduates of my TESOL Certificate course (the SIT TESOL), Brittany Burgess, completed the EPIK application process and will be…

Our Fall mini conference took place a few weeks ago on Saturday, September 30th and was a great success! The mini conference was attended by 120 guests from around the tri-state area, making it the most packed conference to date! Presenters included many of Rennert’s own, including Autumn Westphal (yours truly), Head of Teacher Training;…

The JET Program is one of the most competitive (and reliable) sources of job placement for international teachers looking to work in Japan. It is a long and arduous process to apply, but if you are accepted, you will receive a job working as an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) in Japan. It is a well-known…

It is common practice to use reading or listening texts to introduce new vocabulary or grammar. This is a great way to introduce language because it not only helps integrate skills, but it also provides a (hopefully) natural context for the new language. Context is so important because it is gives the new language meaning…

Teaching Ideas to Enrich Instruction and Increase Motivation It is that time of the year again! Our Fall Adult Ed/IEP TESOL Mini Conference will take place on Saturday, September 30th and we are excited to share the details with you. Here is the tentative schedule: Based on attendee feedback, we have decided to continue…

When your students are really really good. As in, “homework-done-on-time-participating-like-nobody’s-business-contributing-to-a-safe-and-enjoyable-classroom-environment” kind of good, what do you do to reward them? If you are working in adult education, you might be thinking, “My students’ progress is their reward.” And in this case, I am inclined to agree…for the most part (Honestly, I use reward games with…

Critical Incident Exercises (CIEs) are an interesting tool to help build your students’ cultural awareness. Through the analysis of situations in which cultural challenges occur, students can develop a deeper level of empathy and reflect on their own cultural perspectives. CIEs work to put the student in the shoes of another culture in order to introduce…

Interactive Ideas for an Engaging Classroom It is that time of the year again! We have finalized the schedule for Rennert NY TESOL Center’s Spring TESOL Mini Conference and are excited to share the details with you. The conference will take place on Saturday, June 10th from 8:30am to 1:00pm. Here is the flyer: Based…

I have just returned from an enriching and exciting week at TESOL 2017 in Seattle. Anytime I attend a convention like this, I come home energized with a head full of ideas that I am itching to incorporate into my teaching and training practice. It is also a wonderful opportunity to analyze trends in the…

Infographics are easy to make and a fun way to spice up your lessons. In the January professional development workshop, we discussed ways to use infographics in the English language classroom and practiced making our own infographics with an easy-to-use website. I will go over some quick and easy tips from this workshop that you…

SIT Certificate Course Alumni Event Free Professional Development Workshop In this workshop, we will explore how to exploit a real-world connection between an authentic text and the tasks that we plan for our students to build receptive skills. Ideas will be presented to develop both reading and listening skills authentically with real-world materials. Please contact…

At times it can be challenging to come up with fun, interesting, motivating and communicative activities for students to practice language. I have found that using theater games (activities typically used in acting classes to warm up the students) is a great way to get students thinking on their feet in a creative way. The…